"Shiho-chan!" Yukiko cheered, giving her a big hug. "You look so cute, all grown up! I'm so excited to take you shopping."
"You really don't have to do all this, Yukiko-san…"
"I always wanted a daughter to spoil…" Yukiko placed both her hands on Shiho's shoulder. "So, let's go all out today!"
"S-sure..."
'Oi, I'm here too…' Shinichi thought to himself.
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"I'm not a mule!" Shinichi whined as his mother handed him another shopping bag to hold. "Why couldn't you ask dad to come do this?"
"It's the least you could do!" Yukiko looked back at Shinichi, scowling. "Shiho-chan worked so hard to make that antidote for you, isn't that right?"
Shiho nodded, smirking at Shinichi.
"Then why am I holding YOUR bags too?" Shinichi asked his mom.
"Hm, I don't know… maybe because I gave birth to you?" Yukiko sniffled. "Oh, where did I go wrong, to make my son so selfish?" She cried.
"Ah, sorry…" Shinichi said awkwardly. "I don't mind holding your stuff…"
"Then it's settled!" Yukiko smiled. "Let's check out some swimsuits. Summer is just around the corner!"
Yukiko led Shiho into a department store as Shinichi struggled to keep up, holding a bunch of bags on each arm.
'I feel like I just got played…'
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"So, Shiho-chan…" Yukiko said as they browsed the store. "Is there someone you like?"
"Eh? No, nothing like that…"
"Don't worry, you can tell me!" Yukiko whispered. "I can see it in your body language that you have a crush, don't you!" Yukiko clasped her hands together. "Please tell me, woman to woman?"
"I don't have a crush on anyone, sorry to disappoint you, Yukiko-san." Shiho shrugged.
"I see…" Yukiko didn't accept that answer, but let it go for now. "Oh, look at this one!" Yukiko said as she held up a white bikini with gold details. "This one would look so pretty on you."
"I prefer something red… and a bit more coverage."
"Like this color?" She asked, pointing at the red scarf on Shiho's neck. "It's a beautiful scarf, by the way."
"Oh, thank you…"
"Yeah, that looks new, when did you get it?" Shinichi asked.
"I-I got it yesterday while walking around the shopping center, is that a problem?" Shiho said with a slight blush.
"Ah, no, I was just wondering…"
Yukiko smirked at Shiho, noticing the blush on her face. "Hey, Shin-chan!" Yukiko waved Shinichi to come to the side with her.
Shinichi sighed. "What is it, mom?"
Yukiko whispered in Shinichi's ear. "Has Shiho-chan been hanging out with anyone in particular lately?"
"Hm? Well, the only one I can think of is Furuya-san… why?"
"Furuya-san?"
"You know, that one PSB officer that came to our house"
"Oh, that handsome guy!" Yukiko excitedly said.
"What are you guys doing?" Shiho asked from across the aisle.
"No-nothing! Shin-chan was just feeling a little tired."
"Hmm…" Shiho looked back at the rack of swimsuits.
"So? What's up?" Shinichi whispered.
"Oh, nothing! Just curious, that's all!" Yukiko hummed as she walked back to Shiho.
'Eh? Am I missing something?' Shinichi thought as his mom walked away. "I'm gonna go sit at the benches." he said, bored to death.
"Let's see, red… red…" Yukiko scanned the area, grabbing ones that caught her eye.
...
"Here!" Yukiko said as she handed a couple of swimsuits to Shiho. "Try these on!"
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'Too much… too little…' Shiho thought as she tried on the swimsuits. 'This one…' She stopped and looked in the mirror after putting on one of the ones Yukiko gave her.
…
Shiho stepped out of the changing room, putting all but one of them away.
"Oh, you picked that one!" Yukiko squealed. "I can't wait for you to wear it at the beach, maybe you can catch a certain someone's eye?" She teased.
"I-I told you there's no one…" Shiho said, unconvincingly. " Do you really like it?"
"Mm!" Yukiko smiled. "Any guy would fall head over heels if they saw you in this! Including the guy that gave you this scarf?" She said as she playfully poked her scarf.
Shiho stared down at her scarf, feeling a bit shy.
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"Finally, you guys are back, that took forever!" Shinichi sighed, holding out his arm. "Come on, I'll carry it."
Instead of handing him her bag, Shiho grabbed a few off of Shinichi.
"Eh?"
"You said you were tired, right?" Shiho smiled. "Let's head home." She hummed as she walked towards the exit.
"She's acting sweet, it's kinda weird…"
"Oh Shin-chan, how can a detective be so clueless?"
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"Hey, Furuya-san, are you doing anything this evening?"
"No, nothing in particular, Kazami. Why?"
"Great! After work, do you want to grab some dinner at Dondy?" Kazami asked as he fixed up his desk. "I've been craving their curry lately."
"Ah… I just had it yesterday, I don't mind going again though!"
"Eh? You went yesterday?" Kazami asked.
"Yup!"
"…you went by yourself?"
"No, I went with a friend, why?" Rei innocently said.
'W-what! That's Furuya-san and I's spot! Who else would he go there with? Could it be… am I getting replaced? Is he demoting me?!' Kazami thought to himself, panicked.
"F-Furuya-san…"
"Hm? What's up Kazami?"
"This friend… is he an officer?"
"An officer? No, no! Just a friend outside of work!" Rei smiled.
"Oh, I see! Of course!" Kazami chuckled.
"Ah, but it wasn't a he."
"Eh?"
"My friend! She's a woman." Rei said nonchalantly.
"Ah, a woman, my mistake…" Kazami froze for a second. 'A woman?! In my years of knowing Furuya-san, I've never seen him go out to eat with a woman one on one! Could it be… he has a girlfriend?' Kazami shook his head. 'No, no… if she was, he would've just called her that, but he said she was a friend…
"Is it a tough case?" Rei asked suddenly.
"Huh?"
"You look so deep in thought, Kazami."
"Ah, yeah… just thinking about work, that's all!" Kazami laughed. 'I need to get to the bottom of this, it's gonna bug me all day…'
"Say, Furuya-san…"
SUSPECT IN PURSUIT! I NEED BACKUP!
"…Eh?"
"What are you doing, Kazami?! Let's go! I'm driving!" Rei called out as he grabbed his keys.
"Ah, wait for me!"
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'I'm so curious…' Kazami thought as Rei raced down the street, quickly catching up to the suspect.
"Hey Furuya-san, do you want to invite that friend of yours to join us for dinner tonight? You know what they say, the more the merrier!"
"Hm? Ah… I don't think so…" Rei said as he made a sharp turn. "She's hanging out with her friend today, I don't think she'll have time."
"Oh, never mind then…" Kazami said. 'He even knows her schedule? Something is definitely up! Could it be… maybe he's seeing a married woman?' Kazami thought as he looked over at Rei.
'No, Furuya-san wouldn't have an affair…would he?'
"Hey, Furuya-san, what's your friend's name?"
"Miyano Shiho." Rei said, looking at the car in front of him intensely.
'Hmm… that name actually sounds familiar! I feel like I heard it somewhere at work… Don't tell me he's seeing a fellow officer's girl?!'
"Hey, Furuya-san-"
"KAZAMI!" Rei shouted. "We're kind of chasing a suspect right now, can the personal questions wait?"
"S-sorry…"
"Now, hang on tight…" Rei grinned as he began to speed up.
"Woah!"
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"Whew… that guy was giving us a run for our money, huh Kazami?" Rei said as he patted Kazami's back.
"So, what did you want to ask me?"
"Well, I was just wondering about your friend…"
"You want to meet her that badly?" Rei said, surprised.
"I guess I'm a little curious about who she is, that's all…"
"Ah, her name probably sounds familiar, since she was mentioned in the files for that case we wrapped up 6 months ago."
"I see! That's why she sounded familiar!" Kazami sighed in relief. "And… you two are just friends?"
"Mm." Rei smiled with a kind softness in his eyes, a rare expression Kazami had never seen. "She's a very dear friend, one that I care a lot about…"
'LIAR! Liar Liar!' Kazami thought to himself. 'People don't look like that when they talk about their friends!'
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The two finished submitting their report, and were heading out for the day.
'Maybe they really are just friends?' Kazami thought to himself. 'Now that I think about it, how old is Miyano-san? Maybe she's an elderly lady, like a grandmother?
"By the way, Furuya-san, how is Miyano-san?"
"She's 18, why?"
"18? Oh, I see!" Kazami laughed.
"See what?" Rei asked.
"Well, to be honest, I was thinking that maybe you and Miyano-san were dating." Kazami explained.
"But if she's 18, she's probably not interested in an old guy like you! At that age, we're like dinosaurs to them!" He laughed again.
"...Kazami," Rei said with a big smile. He gripped Kazami's shoulder with great strength, towering over him. "Please don't forget your status as my subordinate, ok?"
"Eh?"
"Is that understood?" Rei said as his grip tightened.
"Y-yes sir…"
"Hmmm?"
"Yes sir! Understood!"
"Great! Now, let's go get some food! You wanted Dondy's right?"
"Eh? Ah, yeah…"
Kazami realized at that moment, he may have accidentally hurt Rei's feelings.
Hi everyone! I wanted to write something a little lighthearted for this chapter. I hope you liked it!
Writing this made me feel some nostalgia for Uncovering Okiya, a comedy fic I wrote a while back, so I have decided to continue it! I'm not sure how many more chaps I'll write for it, but I know it will be a couple, so stay tuned for that!
As always, please let me know what you think! Thanks so much for reading!
